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During that same period, 45 cents out of every dollar spent by KCRC went to expanding the network, while 20 cents went to reconstructing existing roads, and 35 cents went to preserving and maintaining roads in good condition. Over the next 10 years, KCRC plans to increase funds for preservation projects (49 cents out of every dollar) to achieve a network with 70 percent of all primary roads in good condition. That will reduce the county's reconstruction needs to less than five percent.

Studies show that for every dollar spent on maintaining and preserving roads in good to fair condition the repair cost increases four to five times if the road drops to a poor condition rating. From 2002 through 2005, KCRC invested $202,000 to chip seal 362 primary and local miles within the network, and $262,000 to micro-surface 76.5 miles of primary and local roads.

During the same period, Kent County spent $72,500 per mile to apply an "ultra thin" hot-mix asphalt overlay to 10.5 miles of primary and local roads. The investment in preservation projects will continue to increase over the next 10 years in order to achieve and maintain a higher percentage of "good condition" roadways throughout KCRC's network.

Chip seal, micro-surfacing key preservation treatments

Chip seal contractor C and C Construction of Montgomery, MI was awarded the county's chip seal work for 2005, 2006 and 2007. Owner Chris Ruhl says his company has been placing approximately 1.3 million square yards of chip seal each year on county and residential roadways.

"The county purchases the material and stages it for the projects, and does a great job prepping the roads before we come in to do the work," Ruhl says. "We have two Etnyre spreaders, a couple of Etnyre distributor trucks, a 10,000-gallon stationary tanker, several rubber-tired rollers, and we just purchased a new 20-foot Bearcat spreader for next season.